Electric body-wear



(No Model.)

L. ANDERSON. ELECTRIC BODY WEAR.

No. 464,691. Patented Dec. 8, 1891.

UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE.

LAURITZ ANDERSON, OF CHICAGO, ILLINOIS.

ELECTRIC BODY-WEAR.

SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent No. 464,691, dated December8, 1891.

Application filed March 16, 1891. Serial No. 385,225. (No model.)

To all whom it may concern:

1 3e it known that I, LAURITZ ANDERSON, a citizen of the United Statesof America, residing at Ohicago,in the county of Cook and State ofIllinois, have invented certain new and useful Improvements in ElectricBodyear, of which the following is a specification, reference being hadtherein to the accompanying drawings.

This invention relates to electric body appllances for the treatment ofvarious forms of diseases by the local application of an electriccurrent to the affected part or parts.

The objects of this invention are to provide a battery of simple anddurable construction capable of generating an eificient current, toprovide means for directing the electric'current to different parts ofthe body without the necessity of changing the loca tion of thecontact-buttons, and to improve and simplify, generally, theconstruction and arrangement. of electric body appliances.

The invention consists in the features of construction and combinationsof parts hereinafter fully described, and pointed out in the appendedclaims.

In the accompanying drawings, Figure 1 is a plan view of an electricbody appliance constructed in accordance with my invention. Fig. 2 is adetail rear elevation of the switchboard. Figs. 3, 4, and 5 aresectional views taken on the lines 3 3, 4t 4, and 5 5 of Fig. 1,respectively. Fig. (S is a detail elevation of the battery. Figs. 7 andS are perspective views of the adjacent ends of two cells; and Fig. 9 isa fragmentary perspective view of the end portionjof the battery, takenfrom the opposite side to that shown in Fig. 6.

Referring to said drawings, A indicates the pad for carrying the batteryand switch-board. Said pad is preferably made of leather or othersuitable material and is provided with a longitudinal pocket I in itslower portion,

said pocket being open at both ends. A battery B is inserted within thepocket 1, and said battery is provided at its end portions with contactpins 2 and 3, which project through apertures aim the sides of thepocket 'l,it being understood that the pocket is longer than saidbattery. The said battery is held within the pocket by means of twoswinging loops 5, pivoted to the upper portion 6 of the pad near theends thereof. After the battery is inserted within the pocket the loopsare swung from the positions shown in dotted lines to the positionsshown in full lines in Fig. 1, and as shown in Fig. 5 the loops willcompress the ends of the pocket. The said loops are provided withnotched openings or slots '7, which engage the said contact-pins whenthe loops embrace the pockets, Fig. l. The said loops also form a partof the circuit and serve to connect the battery with the switch-board C,secured to the upper part6 of the pad. The said switch-board isconnected with the loops 5 by the conducting-strips S, and theswitch-buttons 9 upon said board are connected with saidconducting-strips 8 and thereby with the poles of the battery B. Thesaid switch-board is provided with a couple of upper contact-points l0and a couple of lower contactpoints ll, with which the switch-buttons 9connect with. The said contact-points 10 and 11 are connected with themetallic plates 12, which project beyond the edge of the switch-boardand are provided with perforations 13. Flexible conductingcords D areprovided at their ends with metallic hooks 14-, by means of which theyare connected with the apertured plates 12, Figs. 1 and 2, and with thecontact-buttons 15. The said metallic hooks 1% have a springtongue thatpresses against an overhanging lip, so that when the pin or other partis inserted between the tongue and lip it will be held between the sameby their spring action. The said contact-buttons comprise a curved plate0, having a safety-pin c on its concave face, and, as shown in Fig. 1,said plate is located beneath the underclothing and next to the skin ofthe wearer, and the safety-pin passes through the clothing, so that oneof the hooks II can be hooked thereto. Said hooks 1i embrace open springloops or hooks, which are adapted to engage either the pins c or theapertured plates and be socured thereto by the frictional contact, andat the same time to provide an electrical connection between said parts.

In the use of this electrical body appliance it is intended to apply theelectric current to different parts of the body at pleasure to reachdirectly the affected parts, and to this end two of the flexible cords Dlead from the upper edge of the switch-board C and two lead from thelower edge of said switch-board, and said cords are long enough to reachthe upper and lower parts of the body. The said pad is worn beneath thevest or other garment that will permit ready aecessthereto, so that theswitch-buttons can be manipulated to direct the current to the affectedpart or parts of the body at pleasure.

In Fig. l the switch-buttons are shown as located in contact with thelower contactpoints 11, so that the current will pass through the lowercords D to the lower portion of the body. The said switch-buttons can,however,

U be placed in contact with the upper contactpoints 10, or with oneupper and one lower contact-point, in an obvious manner. The ability tothus change the direction of the current to reach the affected part orparts in a simple and convenient manner is a marked advantage, since bymerely reaching beneath the vest or other garment and moving theswitch-buttons, as described, the current can be changed to reach theaffected parts. The said pad is provided with loops or eyes l6,by meansof which it can be attached to the person.

As a separate and distinctimprovement in electrical body-wear I haveprovided a battery of novel construction. The said battery comprises aplurality of cells compactly, but yieldingly, connected together. Thesaid battery is rectangular in cross-section, Fig. 3, and is of a lengthto fit within the pocket 1. The cells composing said battery eachconsist of a zinc tube 17, having a partition 18 near one end thereof,and a carbon stick or element 19, inserted within the open end of saidzinc tube 17 and projecting beyond the same, as shown in Fig. 5. Betweenthe zinc tube and carbon stick an insulation 20 of porous material-suchas felt or the likeis located. The said cells are coupled together bymeans of metallic spring-arms 21, secured to the outer face of thepartition 18, which engage the projecting end of the carbon stick of theadjacent cell and hold the same by frictional contact. "When the batteryis made up of a plurality of cells in this manner, the same is inelosedby a cloth or porous covering 22, which is bound closely around thebattery; but is open at the ends to allow the poles to project. The saidcovering prevents the cells from separating longitudinally, while thespring connections between the cells afford a yielding connectionbetween the same, which makes a flexible or yielding battery and perthepocket in an obvious manner and then dipped in weak acetic acid(vinegar) and allowed to remain therein asufficient length of time tobecome thoroughly soaked, whereupon it is removed and the acid dried outof the porous covering or cloth 22. The battery is then replaced withinthe pocket 1.

I have provided means for changing the nature of the current to vary thetreatment of the affected part, and for this purpose the zinc tube atthe negative end of the battery is provided with a metallic strip 25,sliding in a guideway 27, secured to said tube. When this strip ispushed in, it will connect two or more cells, according to the distanceit is pushed in, and will thus put the cells on short circuit andthereby produce a weaker current. It will thus be seen that the strengthof the current can be regulated to correspond to the treatment desired.

I claim as my invention- 1. An electric body appliance comprising a padhaving aswitchboard, a plurality of flexible cords D, connectedtherewith, and a bat tery connected with said switch-board.

2. An eleetricbody appliance comprising a pad having a pocket, a batterylocated within said pocket, loops pivoted to the end portions of saidpad and adapted to swing over and embrace the end portions of saidpocket, and a plurality of flexible cords electrically connected withsaid battery.

3. An electric body appliance comprising a pad having a pocket, abattery located within said pocket, loops pivoted to the end portions ofsaid pad and adapted to swing over and embrace the end portions of saidpocket, and a plurality of flexible cords electrically connected withsaid battery.

l. An electric body appliance comprising a pad having a pocket, abattery located within said pocket and provided at its poles with pins 2and 3, which project through the sides of said pocket, loops pivoted tosaid pad and adapted to swing over the end portions of said pocket andengage said pins, and a plurality of flexible cords electricallyconnected with said battery.

5. An electric body appliance comprising a pad having a pocket, abattery located within said pocket and provided at its poles with pins 2and 3, which project through the sides of said pocket, apertured loopspivoted to said pad and adapted to swing over the end portions of saidpocket and engage said pins, and a plurality of flexible cordselectrically connected with said battery.

6. An electric body appliance having a battery comprising a plurality ofcells and a connection between said cells, consisting of a spring arm orarms on an element of one cell adapted to engage an element of anadjacent cell.

7. An electric body appliance havingabattery comprising a plurality ofcells, each of said cells consisting of a zinc tube andan inelosed andinsulated carbon stick.

tongue and an overhanging lip, said tongue and lip being adapted to holda contact-pin or other partbetween them.

11. A battery for electric body appliances, comprising a plurality ofcells and a sliding strip connected to one end of said cells.

In testimony whereof I aifix my signature in presence of two witnesses.

LAURITZ ANDERSON.

HARRY COBB KENNEDY,

} \Vitnesses:

OTTO LUEBKERT.

